BMW stole the spotlight at the Geneva auto show with the introduction of its M3 “concept,” a concept only in name and color. Any new M3 is press-stopping news to the enthusiast community, but this time it's all the bigger because word has trickled down of an expanded M3 lineup that will eventually include a lighter-weight coupe, a convertible, a wagon, and a sedan.
Our spies have previously caught the folding-hardtop convertible in action on public roads, and now they bring us these pictures of the sedan, the first four-door M3 in 10 years, by the time it shows up. Based on these photos of test mules, we can't verify that the sedan will wear the same front-end styling as was shown on the Geneva concept, but we expect it will be similar. Notably absent in the rear three-quarter shot is the fender vent from the concept, another detail we expect to see on production versions of this car.
What we do see in the photos is that the M3 sedan will have the same flared wheel openings as the coupe, the same sneering headlights, as well as the same quad-exhaust outlets and subtle Gurney-flap rear spoiler. The spy shots also caught an open sunroof, which suggests the more practical sedan will forgo the extreme weight-saving carbon-fiber roof of the coupe.
With or without that roof, the M3 sedan will retain the heart of the beast, the high-revving 4.0-liter V-8 with approximately 410 horsepower. With the twin-turbo inline-six of the 335i sedan, we’ve recorded 0-to-60-mph sprints in 4.8 seconds, so the M3 sedan will still be capable of that benchmark blast in less than five seconds with a husky pilot bogging the launch and missing a shift.
We expect to see the M3 coupe this fall, with the convertible coming about a year from now and the sedan joining the fold in the fall of 2008. Last time BMW sold an M3 sedan, in 1998, consumers had their choice of two or four doors for the same base price. This time around, we expect the M3 to start at about $55,000. Choices, choices.
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